Xi ended his tour by making the first visit by a Chinese president to the Republic of the Congo, a small and impoverished country in central Africa which has significant oil resources and other untapped mineral wealth.

China’s President Xi Jinping on Friday signed deals worth several million dollars with his Congolese counterpart in sectors as varied as banking and infrastructure, on the final leg of his three-nation Africa tour. His visit to Tanzania, South Africa and now the Republic of the Congo underscores Beijing’s growing presence in the resource-rich continent

China and South Africa vowed to make their relationship a diplomatic priority and tackle trade imbalances as they signed a series of deals on deepening co-operation following talks between President Xi Jinping and his counterpart Jacob Zuma.

China will enhance energy co-operation with Africa over the next three years, forming a key plank in its engagement with the continent as Premier Wen Jiabao prepares to hold talks with African leaders in Egypt.

The wholesale clothing market at No 88 Guangyuan West Road is a lone finger of concrete between two arteries of electrified railway. The tracks converge at the building's rear before snaking down to Guangzhou station 500 metres to the southeast.

China's growing investment in Africa's oil and gas resources could eclipse the political influence of the west in the energy-rich continent and sour Sino-western relations, according to an international security journal.

China is seeking to convert its political capital in Africa into lucrative economic and trade deals, a mainland analyst has suggested ahead of Premier Wen Jiabao's scheduled trip to the resource-rich continent next weekend.